There's more good news for theatre aficionados as Ajoka brings to Karachi a double bill of theatre at its best. While the controversial Burqavaganza is a ride through a country all covered up, Hotel Mohenjodaro dares to show all and sundry a frightening vision of the times to come.
Burqavaganza is to be staged on October 13 and 14, is the story of two young lovers who are determined to defy the hypocritical values of an ultra-conservative and loveless society and challenge the self-appointed custodians of the morality and faith. This tale of love in the time of jihad is told in a lighter vein with humor, song and dance. Meanwhile, Urdu short story writer Ghulam Abbas wrote Hotel Mohenjodaro in 1968.
The play, to be staged on October 15, has already been performed in Lahore and Islamabad. With the Marriot bombing fresh in our minds and the anniversary of the Karsaz carnage on October 18, in Karachi, Hotel Mohenjodaro may seem too close to the terrifying sordid reality. — F.S.
The primary reason for governance failure in Pakistan is not the geographical size of the existing provinces but the reluctance of provincial capitals to empower local bodies.
